Indian Diet and the Persistent Protein Challenge
Indian Diet and Its Challenges with Protein When India achieved independence in 1947, the nation faced a daunting reality: widespread hunger and food scarcity. The government’s immediate priority was survival — ensuring that every citizen could access at least two full meals a day. In the decades that followed, food policy continued to emphasize quantity over quality, with the central goal being to eliminate hunger rather than to optimize nutrition. This approach, while successful in reducing starvation, inadvertently created a nutritional imbalance. Protein — the building block of growth, repair, and overall health — was sidelined. The predominance of vegetarian diets across large sections of the population made it even more difficult to meet recommended protein requirements. For the ordinary Indian household, affordability dictated food choices. Carbohydrates such as rice, wheat, and maize became the staples, as they were cheap, filling, and widely available. Protein-rich foods ...